CENTRAL COAST / Highway 1 Access Limited Until Late April in Big Sur

Michael McCabe, Chronicle Staff Writer

Published
4:00 am PST, Friday, February 27, 1998

1998-02-27 04:00:00 PDT BIG SUR -- Big Sur residents are hunkering down for the long haul as yet another slide on Highway 1 means they will have extremely limited access to the outside world at least until late April.

Steady erosion of the soil beneath Highway 1 at Hurricane Point increased last weekend, prompting Caltrans officials to limit access even further on the 70-mile stretch between Carmel Highlands to San Simeon.

To travel to and from the north, Big Sur residents now will be forced to get out of their vehicles at night, walk across the washed-out road, and then rely on friends or relatives to pick them up in another vehicle on the other side, said Frank Pinney, Big Sur's fire chief.

Some just walk or bicycle the rest of the way to Carmel.

"It's the 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. rule for Big Sur residents," Pinney said. "The daylight hours are for the Caltrans workers trying to fix the road. We get the night. Sounds like a rock and roll song."

Highway 1 in Big Sur has been severely damaged this winter in at least 20 locations, mainly as a result of plugged culverts beneath the highway, said Val Houdyshell, a Caltrans spokeswoman.

About 150 workers, including Caltrans construction crews and contractors, have been working frantically for the past three weeks to reopen Highway 1. The cost to repair the road has been estimated to be $8 million and climbing, Houdyshell said.

Earlier this week, five teachers who live in Carmel but teach at the Captain Copper elementary school in Big Sur walked across the washed out highway at Hurricane Point carrying groceries and luggage. They plan to stay at least a week in Big Sur in one of the best hotels the region can offer, the Ventana Inn.

With many businesses shut down most of the day, and ways of escape becoming fewer, many Big Sur residents are getting together more than ever to try to spread good cheer, said Janet Lesniak, proprietor of the Big Sur River Inn.

"We are closed basically although the store is still open," Lesniak said. "We open the restaurant on Wednesday night and have $5 community dinners to try to keep everyone together and keep our spirits up."

Lesniak said most Big Sur residents appear to be holding up remarkably well, although there have been several who left the area either because they are running out of cash or they can't put up with the isolation.

"Walking across Hurricane Point is really very weird," she said. "Earlier this week, my husband was carrying groceries home along Highway 1 and he said he felt like he was walking in Sarajevo."